Recently, various physiological chemistry effects of sea algae have been verified and the interest on sea algae inducing bioactive materials has been increased. Also, a cancer cell inhibition effect and lipid metabolism improvement effect in blood on ethanol extracts extracted from sea weed fusiforme, sea tangle, brown seaweed, seaweeds, green layer have been reported. In case of porphyran with the highest farm production amount of sea algae in Korea, it has the lowering action of cholesterol, antibacterial effect, anticancer effect as well as various physiological actions such as anti-coagulation effect and anti-oxidation effect of fucoidan.
Porphyra called as layer is classified as sea algae of bangiaceae of bangiales of rhodophyta and has a long ellipse shape or an egg shape like a strip with length of 14˜25 cm and width of 5˜12 cm. There are Porphyra tenera, P. yezoensis, P. suborbiculata and the like as the kind of seaweed and P. yezoensis is the main kind of farm seaweed in Korea. Seaweed contains in special calcium and phosphorus abundantly. As mentioned above, it is discovered that porphyran contained in seaweed as polysaccharide has bioactive effects such as anti-cancer, anti-virus and anti-coagulation actions and the like and accordingly, the great concern is concentrated to search bioactive materials of seaweed. Also, polyphenol as the anti-oxidation substance is contained into seaweed. Han et al. (J. Korean Soc. Food Sci, Nutr. 33, 324-330, 2004) describes that layer extracts recovers the production of pyridinoline for mixing and crosslinking collagen. Yashizawa et al. (Bioscience Biotechnology and Biochemistry 59, 1862-1866, 1995) also describes that polysaccharide extracted from seaweed shows the microphage promotion action. A study on the structure and function of porphyran extracted from various seaweed has been performed actively.
Acetaminophen (AAP) is the most-widely used anti-inflammatory agent and when taking an excess of quantity, a secure liver damage is occurred. In the United States and United Kingdom, the liver injury due to AAP occupies the highest position among causes of liver disease due to medicines. Accordingly, the liver injury mechanism caused by AAP examines closely and several studies for preventing or recovering the liver injury have been progressed. Cathleen et al. (TOXICOLOGICAL SCIENCES 84, 201-208, 2005) report that when administrating AAP into a rat, the PARP activity as one of cellular death phenomena is shown. Tamara et al. (TOXICOLOGICAL SCIENCES 76, 229-236, 2003) report that AAP generates the lipid peroxidation of liver and then causes to happen the liver injury. On the other hand, Sidhartha et al. (Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics 369, 42-58, 1999) report that the cell apoptosis of liver cells by AAP is prevented when proanthocyanidin as grapestone extracts is administrated into a rat. Francisco et al. (Journal of Ethnopharmacology 98, 103-108, 2005) report that when administrating protium heptaphyllum extracts which has been used for a long time in South America as folk remedies, the liver injury by AAP can be prevented.
Accordingly, inventors of the present application provide with the present invention in which the liver injury induced by acetaminophen is prevented and treated by using protein extracts from porphyra yezoensis separated from porphyra yezoensis and then a mechanism on these effects is produced.